The deputy sheriff says he wants the job, the sheriff says the deputy is the best person for the job but the governor -- who has the final say about the job -- is not saying.

With Westmoreland County Sheriff Chris Scherer's recent election to the Court of Common Pleas, Gov. Ed Rendell must decide on a Democrat to serve out Mr. Scherer's remaining two years in office.

Deputy Sheriff Charles Moore, who will act as the interim sheriff when Mr. Scherer leaves at the end of the year, said he would prefer that the position become more than interim.

"I'm going to seek the appointment of the governor," Mr. Moore, 49, said.

"I think my qualifications would allow me to carry the ship in the direction that taxpayers wanted to see it going when they elected Chris. He was elected for the third time.

"The taxpayers of this county obviously approve the direction of this office and the job that it has done. Because of that, I feel that I'm the best qualified."

Mr. Moore, of East Huntingdon, has served with Mr. Scherer for the 10 years he has been sheriff. Before working in the sheriff's office, Mr. Moore, who has a political science degree from the University of Pittsburgh, spent 10 years in Family Court and four years in the clerk of courts office.

Mr. Moore said he had worked well with Mr. Scherer, and that he wanted to continue the work that the two have started in what he calls "a seven-day-a-week, 365-day[-a-year], 24-hour operation."

Mr. Moore said: "I don't anticipate any major changes. [The sheriff] kept me involved in all of the decisions."

Mr. Moore said, however, that the next sheriff would have the task of continuing to incorporate and improve on technology throughout the operation.

"From the office perspective, the issue is technology ... making it amendable with the deputies out on the road, getting it into the cars and potentially doing civil services in that direction," Mr. Moore said.

"We are currently doing our warrant service that way. We are in the area of communication advancements. Those are some of the things we are trying to improve on here."

Mr. Scherer, 44, of Lower Burrell, said he was proud of what he, Mr. Moore and the rest of the staff have accomplished in the sheriff's office during the past 10 years, such as community outreach, visiting senior citizen centers and raising more than $50,000 for charities around the county.

Mr. Scherer said he was most proud of "leaving [the office] in a much better way than I found it," and he contended that Mr. Moore played a large role in the improvements.

"He's very familiar with the operations of this office," Mr. Scherer said. "He has had a hand in all of the moves that we have made. He's very capable in keeping this office running at a high level.

"As a judge, I'm not allowed to be politically involved. But with that being said, I think that there is no better person qualified for this job than him."

Gov. Rendell, however, will have to make that call. Gary Tuma, the governor's press secretary, could not say how likely it is that the governor will appoint Mr. Moore.

In fact, Mr. Tuma said with the elections being so recent, the governor has not begun searching for a replacement for Mr. Scherer, nor has anyone expressed interest to Gov. Rendell about the position. Mr. Tuma could not say when a decision would be made.

"Sometimes we make these decisions very quickly, and sometimes we allow the interim person to serve for a period of time," Mr. Tuma said. "It all depends on how quickly we can identify the person [Gov. Rendell] thinks is a suitable candidate."

Mr. Tuma, however, did give an idea of the type of sheriff that the governor would most likely select.

"It's obvious someone who understands the duties of the job well -- someone who has strong character and is respected within the community where he would be serving," Mr. Tuma said. "I think the governor will probably take into consideration the opinions of other people about the person's character, experience, competence and so on."

Mr. Scherer said an effective sheriff must have patience and must understand the community that he or she will serve.

"You need to understand what people in this community are looking for in what the job description is here in the sheriff's office -- have a focus and direction on the needs of the public and the needs of the court," Mr. Scherer said. "I don't think that there's a better person around for the job right now than Chuck Moore."

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